The Five Question Challenge with Amanda Lamb

Amanda Lamb is the latest artist to tackle The Five Question Challenge!

Hailing from Southern California, Amanda Lamb was fascinated with music from a very early age.

As she got older, she slowly embraced country music after listening to the Dixie Chicks and Shania Twain.

Now, Amanda is ready to take the music world by storm! Her first single: “We Were Here” was written by music industry veterans Bill DiLuigi and Melissa Bollea, was highlighted on multiple websites including Top 40 Charts, Music News Nashville and The Celebrity Café.

For this edition, Amanda talked about the inspiration behind the new single and the challenges that the Millennial Generation artists face in the modern-day recording industry.

Jacob Elyachar: When did you get interested in music? How did that passion evolve into wanting a career in the recording industry?

Amanda Lamb: I have always been a lover of music, and my vast knowledge of the entire catalog of Barney songs is well-known to my family;) I was always banging on the piano and singing in church choirs as a kid. When I was 12 it all got a bit more real when I had to sing, by myself, on a stage. I say “had to” because it was the required mid-term of the high school/middle school choir! I was frightened to death, but after I sang my song and heard the applause and the smiles on my fellow choir members’ faces, I was hooked. From there, I started writing my own songs (in math class, like any self-respecting teenage songwriter, of course!), recorded a demo, and did a few live gigs. It was when I was 16 and recording an album that I knew this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

JE: What are some of the challenges that this generation of artists face in the modern-day recording industry? How do you plan to overcome those obstacles?

AL: I think one of the biggest challenges is getting our music heard when there is just so much competition vying for an audience. It is really easy sometimes to see just how many thousands and thousands of girls like myself are going after the same thing, and be tempted to give up.

But, I am not a stranger to adversity and swimming upstream, so my plan is to..

Keep at it,

Never stop improving myself

Never stop believing that great music will always find a way to an audience. Despite so many blogs and indie artists that say “you don’t need a label to make it thanks to social media and home studios,” I do think that to find a truly career-sustaining audience, you need some sort of label representation. I’m not sitting around waiting for a label to rescue me, though. I am doing my thing, and if the right label takes an interest in my work I would be more than willing to meet.

JE: What was the inspiration behind your latest single: “We Were Here”?

AL: One of my songwriters, Bill DiLuigi, traveled from Nashville to California to write with me, because I was recovering from surgery (an appendectomy – ouch), and one morning he went out for a walk down in Laguna Beach. He was utterly perplexed at how people etched their names into aloe plants along the sidewalk. It reminded him of how people carve into trees in his neck of the woods. It got us talking about how people will find ways to leave their mark on the world, and how that’s a universal desire. To be remembered. So, the song is about making it known that you were “there” and made memories in that place.

JE: How has social media helped you establish your career?

AL: It is definitely allowed me to share my music on a broader scale! It has also given me amazing opportunities that I wouldn’t have had if I wasn’t on social media, so I’m very grateful for that. For instance, last summer I was invited to travel up to Washington State and perform for the most amazing group of 400 kids who were attending a diabetes summer camp. These kids were so enthusiastic during my acoustic set that I actually started to cry! I’d never felt that kind of love…I was truly perplexed at how these people had even found out about me, but it was through social media. The other way it has helped me is by connecting with my audience and figuring out what they’re into. It’s amazing, scary, and productive when you can get immediate feedback from fans. I suppose that 20 years ago, young artists had to rely on management and family/friends to give opinions. I realized a long time ago that my family will blindly love everything I do (thank goodness!) but fans will give it to you straight.

JE: If you had the chance to meet with aspiring singer-songwriters, what advice would you share with them?
AL: Do not be afraid to let other writers (even if it’s a parent or friend) contribute to a song idea. Co-writing is a great experience, and I wish I’d been more open to that earlier on this journey of mine. When I first started out I was like a hungry dog guarding her food if someone tried to tell me how to improve or change my song!! Years later, I started to wonder if my songs could be improved by having another set of brains in the room. I went to Nashville last year because it’s truly an understood “thing” that you will co-write there. It’s believed that 2 heads are better than one, so I thought I’d try it. After my first session with a co-writer, I was hooked. Ideas just flowed out of me because I knew had a partner who shared my goal of creating a great song.